New South Park opening quells historic fight for Greenie campus

Published 8:01 am, Friday, January 6, 2012

The new South Park Middle School campus opened this week and will be celebrated with a public open house on Friday. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

The new South Park Middle School campus opened this week and will be celebrated with a public open house on Friday. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

Photo: Pete Churton

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The Ambush Demolition excavator lines up to the front facade of the South Park Middle School as demolition began in April, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

The Ambush Demolition excavator lines up to the front facade of the South Park Middle School as demolition began in April, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Photo: Beaumont

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The demolition of the former South Park Middle School continued in April, 2010 with memorabilia from the school available to the public. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

The demolition of the former South Park Middle School continued in April, 2010 with memorabilia from the school available to the public. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

Photo: Pete Churton

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The demolition of the old South Park Middle School began in April, 2010. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

The demolition of the old South Park Middle School began in April, 2010. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

Photo: Enterprise

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In a bit of irony, since some people considered the demolition of the former South Park Middle School to be an ambush, a front-end loader marked "Ambush Demolition" demolishes the school front entrance in April 2010. Pete Churton/The Enterprise less

In a bit of irony, since some people considered the demolition of the former South Park Middle School to be an ambush, a front-end loader marked "Ambush Demolition" demolishes the school front entrance in April ... more

Photo: Pete Churton

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People lined the fence boarder to watch the Ambush Demolition excavator as it lined up to the front facade of the South Park Middle School to tear into the building in April, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

People lined the fence boarder to watch the Ambush Demolition excavator as it lined up to the front facade of the South Park Middle School to tear into the building in April, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Photo: Beaumont

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The new South Park Niddle School at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Virginia Street was taking shape in March, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

The new South Park Niddle School at the intersection of Highland Avenue and Virginia Street was taking shape in March, 2010. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Photo: Dave Ryan

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The Ambush Demolition excavator worked the pile of debris in April, 2010 as Deloris Coudrain makes her way to it in her attempt to get a brick for her sister who attended South Park High School. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise less

The Ambush Demolition excavator worked the pile of debris in April, 2010 as Deloris Coudrain makes her way to it in her attempt to get a brick for her sister who attended South Park High School. Dave Ryan/The ... more

Photo: Beaumont

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Steel beams stand lined up for another section of the building at the construction site of the new South Park Middle School in January, 2011. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Steel beams stand lined up for another section of the building at the construction site of the new South Park Middle School in January, 2011. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Photo: Dave Ryan

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This past October the new South Park Middle School was actually beginning to look like a school. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

This past October the new South Park Middle School was actually beginning to look like a school. Pete Churton/The Enterprise

Photo: Pete Churton

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Work on the new roof of the new South Park Middle School could be seen from Highland Avenue in March, 2011. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

Work on the new roof of the new South Park Middle School could be seen from Highland Avenue in March, 2011. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise

"It looked old then," the 33-year-old said. "That was many years ago."

It doesn't look old anymore, and Ambers, who said she thought it looked wonderful from the outside, said she is planning on walking around inside today during the school's 4 p.m. grand opening.

It's an upgrade that didn't come without a fight.

This new building stands in the footprint of the former South Park High School building, an 87-year-old structure that many alumni were strenuously opposed to tearing down.

One, Eddie Estilette, filed a lawsuit, along with the Beaumont Heritage Society, in an attempt to save the building from demolition. After months of public debate, Bob Wortham, 58th District Court judge, ruled the district could demolish the building, but could not pay for the job with any bond funds.

He also ruled that the district defrauded taxpayers by misrepresenting whether the school would not be torn down and ordered the district to pay the attorneys' fees of the plaintiffs.

Estilette said the plaintiffs would have liked to see the building's façade maintained and renovations done on the interior to modernize the building.

Darlene Chodzinski, executive director of the Beaumont Heritage Society, said there were multiple attempts to get the district to consider alternatives to demolishing the building but the district ignored them.

School board president Woodrow Reece said the district looked into renovating the building but decided the best course of action was to simply start from scratch.

"Why should one part of town get a refurbished building when everybody else gets a new building?" he asked. "Especially when we have the means."

Reece said that although renovating the building might have seemed cheaper, there could have been some unexpected costs develop during the renovations, the same type of situation that occurred in turning Field Elementary School into the Administration Annex Building. Trustees most recently had to approve a $403,100 change order which brought the project's cost to more than $3 million.

The board president praised the current South Park.

"Just look at the results," Reece said. "A lot of kids that may have wanted to go somewhere else because of the conditions there will probably stay there."

Myrtle Mitchell of Beaumont, who has a son now attending South Park, said she was glad the school was rebuilt and complimented the finished product, saying it looked "like a mini-college."

Mitchell said she believes a child can learn in any environment but was glad the students got a new facility. She said she had heard some parents were trying to enroll their kids in Odom Academy, and the new school might keep them at South Park instead.